Broody First-Timer

[Svyetii]

Hey everyone! So, it appears I have my first broody hen…. For the experienced backyard chicken owner, what’s your best advice for dealing with it? We just dispatched our roosters, so I think it’s unlikely that she’s sitting on any fertilized eggs. By dispatching them, I could add two more chicks now. I’d really prefer they be sexlinked though; I’m a bit over raising accidental roosters and having to dispatch them. She’s a buff Orpington, so I kind of assume she’s just going to sit there unless I do something, right? Is it worth trying to find two fertilized eggs for her to sit on? I live in New Mexico and it’s still quite warm here. Could she raise them right in the coop, with a partition maybe? Thanks!

 

[Debbie292d]

You have to decide if you want more chicks or not. If you do, then get her a few eggs, but you will no doubt be getting 50% roosters when they hatch.

If you want to just leave her be, it's about 3 weeks they sit.

If you want to break her, we put ours in a metal dog pen on bricks with food/water and a board for her to stand on. That takes 3-4 days to break them of being broody.

 

[Jener8or]

How long ago did you dispatch your roosters? Hens can still be fertile around ten days after mating, possibly even up to two weeks.

If you don't want to deal with roosters, though, maybe you could let her sit on the eggs and if you have a feed store that still has chicks, you could get some pullets there, or if you have the means to order some (day old would be best for her to "adopt" them). The order minimum from Meyers Hatchery is 3, and most I others I know is around 15, so that might be a bit of an issue (unless you could sell some or find someone to split an order with you.)

If you just want to break her from being broody, cool down her body temperature and put her in a dog kennel or something for a few days so she can't go back to sit on her nest.

 

[CoopBoots]

I wouldn't let her hatch any unless I had a fool proof plan for rehoming cockerels. You can easily get unlucky and get two boys from a two egg hatch.

I also don't give a new broody any eggs until she spends two successive nights sitting on fakes or the empty nest; I want to be sure she's committed. Yes, once they are sitting you can just let her do her thing; she'll give herself little breaks to poop, eat, and drink once or twice daily in most cases. If you NEVER see her come off, you can gently remove her once a day until she figures things out but this is usually pretty hands off. If it is super hot, mine take longer breaks for self care but it doesn't seem to impact their hatch rates.

Finally, if she's a low ranking hen she may get bullied off of a communal nest. I'd separate her if she's a lowbie in the flock and see if you can get her to sit elsewhere to protect the eggs and prevent egg "donations" from other hens that will not hatch on the correct timeline, or at all. You can leave her in a communal nest if you mark the intended eggs and remove new additions daily, but you still run the risk of incubated eggs being broken as dominant hens try to take their turn to lay. For hens I'm confident in, I let them raise chicks completely with the flock with no separation but it is always a risk. Nobody wants to see a chick injured or worse by a bully. Might be best to plan some kind of separate area unless you can supervise closely for the first few days.

Chick adoption is possible, but risky, and you may end up with injured (or worse) chicks that you have to raise yourself. Broodies don't always accept them. Definitely give her close to the full 21 days to sit and plan to get day-olds for best chance of success if you go this route. I've never done it myself so take this advice with a grain of salt.

Good luck!

 

[Mrs. K]

I have done it both ways, I never have the heart to break them. Nothing is more fun than a broody hen with chicks. Leave her be, remove the eggs or let her sit on fake eggs.

Do get day old chicks, this time of year, it can be a trick to get them. But you have 3 weeks to figure that out. As soon as you get them, give them a drink of water. Then at night, in the dark, let them get a little chilled. They should be peeping like made. Let her listen to them for 5 minutes, then in the dark, stick them under her. They will stick like ticks to that warm place.

Then do the hard part and leave. Let her and them figure it out. A lot of times it doesn't work because people interfere too much.

Mrs k

 

[Svyetii]

UPDATE for those wondering how it went: so, after letting Goldie sit on her eggs for a couple weeks, I candled them and didn’t see any signs of fertilization. So I picked up four day old chicks from tractor supply and snuck them under her in the evening after removing the eggs she was sitting on. The adoption went beautifully and she’s the best mama hen I could have asked for. If I could plan to have a broody hen each time I needed to add to my flock, that would be the way I’d go. Best decision ever! Could not be easier or cuter. Here are a few pics of the journey: